Hawaii launches mega 900MW renewables tender

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Hawaii, photographed in October 2013. Source: Flickr / Brent

Hawaiian Electric Co (HECO) has kickstarted a colossal clean energy tender, seeking providers of 900MW worth of renewables and energy storage projects.

The tender launched on Monday is the largest renewables procurement ever issued in the state, with an estimated capacity of 2,000GWh annually.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

The investor-owned utility is soliciting 594MW worth of solar for O'ahu island – together with 135MW for Maui and up to 203MW for Hawai'i – from local and global developers.

All renewables for Maui and Hawai'i must include energy storage, whereas on O'ahu, such partnerships remain optional.

Hawaii has pledged to be powered entirely by renewables by 2045. O’ahu’s 180MW AES coal-fired power plant, which meets 16% of peak power demand on the island, is due to close by September 2022. On Maui, the 27.6MW Kuhului oil-fired plant will be decommissioned in 2024.

Storage on O'ahu and Maui is also being sought to replace firm generating units, which can be provided by renewable generation paired with storage or standalone storage. Contingency storage is also being sought for O'ahu and Hawai'i islands.

Clean energy moves later this year for smaller islands

The winning projects are expected to be selected by May 2020 and come online between 2022 and 2025.

A separate request for proposals for grid services from customer-sited distributed energy resources on O'ahu, Maui, and Hawaii was also launched. The winning projects, which can range from 4-119MW, are expected to be awarded in January 2022 and come online by 2022 at the latest.

According to the HECO, Hawaii’s public utilities commission has engaged independent observers and technical advisers to ensure that all proposals are treated fairly and equitably “due to the complexity of projects sought.”

Later this year, HECO will issue requests for proposals for renewables for two of Hawaii’s smaller islands, pending approval by the state's public utilities commission. It will seek the equivalent of 4MW of solar-plus-storage or 3.6MW of wind-plus-storage for Moloka’i. The equivalent of around 9.5MW of solar-plus-storage will be pursued on Lana’i.

In the first phase of Hawaii’s renewables procurement in 2018, eight projects totalling 260MW/1GWh of solar-plus-storage were negotiated on O’ahu, Maui and Hawai’i. Prices arranged for those projects, which will come online by 2021, average 9.38 US dollar cents per kWh, lower than the current cost of fossil fuel generation, which is about 15 cents per kWh.

US solar prospects amid alliances with the energy storage sector will take centre stage at Solar Media's Solar & Storage Finance USA, to be held in New York on 29-30 October 2019

21 October 2025
New York, USA
Returning for its 12th edition, Solar and Storage Finance USA Summit remains the annual event where decision-makers at the forefront of solar and storage projects across the United States and capital converge. Featuring the most active solar and storage transactors, join us for a packed two-days of deal-making, learning and networking.

Read Next

October 8, 2025
Despite policy headwinds on the federal level, there is optimism for the future of the US solar and storage sector.
October 7, 2025
Doral Renewables has secured a PPA with an unnamed 'corporate buyer' for its 430MW Cold Creek solar-plus-storage project in Texas.
October 7, 2025
US independent power producer (IPP) Arevon has begun operations at two utility-scale solar projects in Indiana.
October 3, 2025
EDF Renewables and Enlight Renewable Energy have advanced solar-plus-storage projects in New Mexico and Arizona.
October 3, 2025
SunStrong Management has raised US$900 million to refinance a 'large portfolio' of residential solar assets developed by SunPower.
September 17, 2025
US renewables developer Longroad Energy has reached financial close for its 400MW 1000 Mile solar project in the US state of Texas.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
October 21, 2025
New York, USA
Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK